High School Newspapers: Factors Significant in Achieving High Ratings.

Blick, Thomas Edward, Jr.

A study was conducted to determine the characteristics shared by top rated high school newspapers. Questionnaires were mailed to the advisers for 100 winning and 100 nonwinning entrants in the annual high school newspaper rating contests conducted by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association from 1975 to 1978. The questionnaires surveyed such variables as school funding, physical facilities for newspaper work, adviser's experience and education, and staff selection criteria. The most noticeable difference between contest winners and nonwinners was in funding, with a larger percentage of winners than nonwinners receiving some school funding. Generally they received much more money than the nonwinners. A majority of schools in both groups offered students at least one journalism course, but over half of the winners offered a second and sometimes a third course. Advisers of top rated papers had a mean of 8.9 years advising experience, compared with 6.1 years for advisers of lower rated papers. Over 50% of the nonwinning papers had more than half their staff with no previous experience, compared to less than one third for the winning papers. Almost half of the winners had a room entirely for newspaper use, compared to only 27% of the nonwinners. Membership in school press organizations was also more frequent for winners than for nonwinners. (Extensive tables of data and a copy of the questionnaire are appended.) (HTH)